civilian

1 of 2

noun

ci·​vil·​ian sə-ˈvil-yən 

also -ˈvi-yən

1

: a specialist in Roman or modern civil law

2

a

: one not on active duty in the armed services or not on a police or firefighting force

b

: outsider sense 1

civilian

2 of 2

adjective

1

a

: of, relating to, or made up of civilians

civilian concerns/demands

the civilian population

civilian customers/casualties

The Congressional Gold Medal and the Presidential Medal of Freedom are the highest civilian honors in the United States.

b

: having the status of a civilian

a civilian pilot

2

: operated or controlled by civilians

civilian industry

: possessed by or vested in civilians

civilian authority

3

: intended or suited for use or consumption by civilians

civilian goods

With twin 2,520-horsepower engines and up to 19 seats, the Sikorsky S-92 is among the world's most powerful civilian helicopters.

—Josh Harkinson

Examples of civilian in a Sentence

Noun

The bomb injured 12 civilians.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Excluding the five Islamist jihadists who took over American Airlines Flight 77 and crashed it, 184 people died at the Pentagon –125 civilians and military members in the building and 59 passengers on the jetliner. — Mike Kelly, USA Today, 7 Sep. 2026

Brown University’s Costs of War project estimates that post-9/11 American military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Pakistan killed nearly a million people between 2001 and 2023, including more than four hundred thousand civilians. — Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2026

Adjective

Using the weapon near civilian aircraft also requires careful coordination. — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 8 Sep. 2026

The attacks also struck a civilian market in Odesa region, an apartment building in Kharkiv region, Zelensky said. — Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for civilian

• castilian
• cotillion
• pavilion
• postilion
• quadrillion
• reptilian
• vermilion
• vermillion
• billion
• million
• pillion
• trillion

Kids Definition

civilian

noun

ci·​vil·​ian sə-ˈvil-yən 

: a person not on active duty in the armed services or not on a police or firefighting force

civilian adjective

Legal Definition

civilian

1 of 2 noun

ci·​vil·​ian

: a specialist in Roman or modern civil law

civilian

2 of 2 adjective

: of or relating to civil law as distinguished from common law